Jefferson County commissioners Tuesday unanimously backed Ralph Schell as the new county administrator, responsible for balancing an annual operating budget of more than $488 million.
Schell replaces Jim Moore, who was fired Thursday without a severance package, according to spokeswoman Kathryn Heider.
Schell, who has worked for the county for 12 years, left his position as director of community resources and open space last week to assume the role of interim administrator. As administrator, he will make $150,000 a year.
Amy P. Ito, manager of planning and development for open space, has replaced Schell as acting director.
Schell said he was looking forward to the new opportunity and providing “more effective leadership.”
“I am going to look at efficiencies, effectiveness and ways I can assure that the department is taking care of its responsibilities,” he said.
The commission appointed Schell through a resolution passed during its board meeting Tuesday morning.
The three commissioners credited Schell’s leadership abilities, management style and creative thinking as their reasons for making him the county’s top executive.
“We are so lucky we had someone with Ralph’s qualifications here on our staff. A national search for a replacement could have taken six months to a year,” Commissioner Faye Griffin said. “Employees will be relieved they won’t have a long lag time between leadership and the stress of wondering who will fill the role.”
Schell was hired by Jefferson County in March 1998 as director of the Community Resources Department, which includes Boettcher Mansion, the Jefferson County Fairgrounds and the Open Space Division. The latter is the oldest county open-space program in the country and has acquired more than 51,000 acres since its inception in 1972.
During Schell’s tenure, the program obtained 19,976 acres using $170 million in open-space funds.
Before joining Jefferson County, Schell had a 20-year career with Colorado State Parks, starting as a planner and advancing to administration director.
He graduated from Colorado State University in 1975 with a degree in outdoor-recreation planning.
Karen Crummy: 303-954-1594 or kcrummy@denverpost.com
